No objection to you
by Butterfly Dancing
Summary: First chapter revised...a lot. Luke is involved in a custody battle with his ex over his daughter. He calls up the one person who is glad to come and help... GL
1. Chapter 1

Look at that! I started a new story! I'm leaving for camping tomorrow so no updates for a week or so! I know! But I wanted to thank everyone for reading my other stories and I hope you like this one! And yes I know I have to work on the horse story but I'm having writer's block on that one.

EDIT: I changed a lot of the first chapter and I ended up deleting the first part so I lost the reviews I got. Sorry guys! But I wasn't thinking about facts when I wrote the first part so…yeah. It's set in California instead of Arcadia now, though there will be special appearances.

Title: No objection to you

Category: GL eventually

Rating: PG-13

Summary: Luke is embroiled in a bitter custody battle with his ex. Grace is his lawyer, appointed in a special case.

AN: I do not own or know the characters. Rosalia is the product of my imagination. I also must thank Sam for all her help in getting this started!

Joan was setting up the guestroom of her condo making sure that she had everything ready for Rosalia's visit. Her niece was going to stay with her over the weekend while Luke was getting set up for the custody battle for her. Joan had decided to make a dinner out of it so she invited Adam over and he said yes. Joan smiled when she thought about her brother. He had graduated at MIT with the highest honors and moved to California for work.

Joan ended up moving to California also and so did Adam. While Helen and Will missed their children, they knew this was a great opportunity for him. About a year after he left, Luke called to let them know they were going to be grandparents.

It was a shock to the whole family. They never expected Luke to become a father so soon. He apparently had met a girl named Lydia and they were dating for a while when she became pregnant. Neither wanted to marry so they decided to raise the baby separately. Nine months later, Rosalia Samantha Girardi was born. Joan and Kevin were showering their niece with gifts before she was even out of the hospital. Helen and Will got to meet the new arrival when she was two months old when Luke brought her and Lydia home for a visit.

Joan and Kevin took to their niece right away. However, they didn't like Lydia at all. Joan called her best friend and ex-boyfriend, Adam, ranting about 'how a beautiful baby girl could come from someone so stuck up on herself?' Adam was unable to control his laughter and Joan hung up on him. She settled on calling Grace, who told Joan to give all her attention to her niece and tolerate Lydia. Joan did just that.

So for Lydia and Luke, raising Rosalia was great up until she was six. Lydia started neglecting the little girl and would leave her with her parents while she went on dates and out to parties. Luke didn't find this out until he went to pick Rosalia up for their weekend together and found no one home. At that same moment, Lydia's mother came to pick something up and found Luke waiting. After they talked, Luke took Rosalia home and called Helen asking her what he should do. Helen, feeling bad for her son, asked him to come home with Rosalia for Christmas. Luke talked to Lydia, who didn't seem to care, and came down to see his family. Joan also came down and invited Adam and his daughter to come with them so they could arrive in Arcadia together.

Rosalia had a great time when she got there. She got to play in the snow and raced around in Kevin's wheelchair with him. Adam's little girl, Elizabeth, got along great with Rosalia and they were already great friends. Unfortunately, Grace couldn't make it home because of work so she didn't get a chance to meet Rosalia.

Grace had decided to become a lawyer and studied family law. She graduated with top honors and was offered a job in New York. Grace couldn't turn this down and she moved to New York. She still kept in touch with her childhood friends, especially Luke, and couldn't believe he was a father. She ordered him to call her if he ever needed help with anything. Luke being ever so optimistic thanked her and declined.

Grace had been able to make it home for visits a few times but she never got to meet Rosalia. She did see the little girl's pictures though and couldn't believe how much she resembled Luke. She hated to admit it but the kid did look cool. Joan gushed about her niece so much that Grace was excited to meet her though she never got the chance.

Sometime in March, after Rosalia's birthday, Helen got a call from her son telling her that he was suing for custody. This was all after he got a call from Lydia's neighbor telling him that she saw Rosalia through the window but no one had been home for hours. Luke went to get his daughter, who was crying cause she was hungry and scared. Luke fed her and told her to pack her stuff so she could go to his apartment while he called Lydia. She told him she was out with her boyfriend and she had forgotten to call Luke. Luke, too angry to speak, just hung up on her and took Rosalia to his place and let her play with her toys while he called a friend of his who told him that it would be a good idea if Luke took custody of Rosalia.

Helen informed her family of the new development and they immediately called Luke backing him up. After Luke began getting things ready, he called to tell them that in time he would need them to come down to California to testify on his behalf at the hearing when he had it set up.

Once Joan was ready, she went into the kitchen to finish making dinner. They were having pasta and garlic bread, Rosalia and Luke's favorite. She had called Adam and told him to come along with Liz. They were still good friends out of high school and they could lean on each other when they missed Grace.

The doorbell rang and Joan answered, smiling when she saw Adam and Elizabeth.

"Hey! Come on in I'm just working on dinner."

"Thanks for inviting us, Jane. Hey Liz, why don't you put your coat away?"

Joan grinned. "And I got the toys all set up for you."

"Okay daddy. Thanks Joan!" Elizabeth ran off.

Joan smiled and hugged Adam. "Tonight's almost perfect. I just wish Grace was here."

"I know. She tries Jane." Adam said.

"I know! That's all she can do right?"

Adam smiled. "Oh I started another sculpture."

"Oh tell me!" Joan said excitedly.

Adam chuckled and told her about his new project for the museum. A half-hour later Luke arrived with Rosalia.

"Hey little brother." Joan gave him a hug.

"Hey sis. Thanks for taking her this weekend."

"No problem. Lydia doesn't have a problem with it?" Joan asked.

Luke just shrugged and Joan smiled. She bent down to Rosalia's height. "Hey there. Hug?"

Rosalia nodded and hugged her. She sniffed the air. "I smell pasta."

Adam, Joan and Luke laughed and Joan grinned.

"Yes you do."

"And garlic bread?" Rosalia raised an eyebrow.

Joan scoffed. "Now what kind of aunt would I be if I didn't supply my favorite niece with the garlic bread?"

Rosalia nodded and looked at Luke. "She's not that evil, daddy."

Adam hooted and Liz giggled. Luke blushed as Joan raised an eyebrow at him.

"So um…is dinner ready?" he asked wanting to change the subject quickly.

"Yes, come on." Joan just rolled her eyes and they went to the dining room.

They sat down to eat and Joan smiled seeing Adam and Luke making sure their respective daughters had enough on their plate. Once that was finished, Joan began the chit chat.

"So Luke have you decided on a lawyer yet?" Joan asked.

Luke shook his head. "No. I was going to make some calls in the morning."

Adam looked at Joan. "I think I know someone…"

Joan glanced up at him and gave him a look. "Adam…"

"What? You know she'd come down for him."

Joan took a bite of her food and swallowed. "Adam she's in the middle of a custody case involving the most influential family in Manhattan."

Luke looked at them. "Are you by any stretch of the imagination referring to Grace?"

Joan looked at him. "No brain boy, I'm referring to Gloria Allred."

Luke rolled his eyes. "I can't call Grace."

"Why not? You know she'd love to come down and help you." Adam said.

"So you want me to call Grace and ask her to leave Manhattan and come all the way to California?"

"It's worth a try." Adam said.

Luke looked at everyone and sighed. "You all know that I would love to see Grace but…"

Joan smiled. "Luke, you want to call her don't you?"

Luke looked at the two of them and then he looked at his daughter. She looked up and smiled, unaware of what they were talking about since no one wanted to get her worried about who she'd be living with permanently.

"It's a good idea, man." Adam said.

Luke sighed. "I'll call her in the afternoon when I'm sure she's awake."

Joan and Adam grinned and dug into their food. Luke ate thinking about Grace and what he'd say to her tomorrow.


	2. Chapter 2

Title: No objection to you

Category: GL eventually

Rating: PG-13

Summary: Luke is embroiled in a bitter custody battle with his ex. Grace is his lawyer, appointed in a special case.

AN: I do not own or know the characters. Rosalia is the product of my imagination. I also must thank Sam for all her help in getting this started!

Grace walked into her small apartment and set her briefcase down on the chair. She went into her bedroom and changed into comfortable shorts and a long shirt. She had been working this custody case for two months now and she finally gave the last arguments for her side. Hopefully all would go well. Grace grabbed her paper and got a bottle of water before settling into a chair to read. Within moments of sitting down, her phone rang. Grace reached over and grabbed it before answering.

"Hello?"

"Um…Grace?" a hesitant voice asked.

Grace smiled. "Geek?"

Luke chuckled. "Hey Grace. How are you?"

"Ugh! Exhausted! How are you?"

"I'm doing okay. I'm just taking a rest at home."

"Ah. California can still go on without the famous Luke Girardi?"

Luke rolled his eyes. "As I'm sure Manhattan can't live without Grace Polk."

"Yeah, yeah. So what's up?"

"Um…well…it's about my situation with Rosalia's mother."

Grace nodded. She knew the situation very well thanks to both Joan and Luke himself and she felt for him. "How is that going?"

"Kind of slow. Grace, I was wondering…would you mind coming down here and representing me? It would make me feel better if you were on my case."

Grace didn't know what to say. Luke was actually asking her to do this for him.

"Wow…I'd love to come down and help you."

"Really?" Grace could hear the shock and excitement in his voice.

"Really. I just have to close this case, which should be by next week, and I'll be on the first flight to California."

"Oh…Grace, thank you! Thank you so much! You have no idea what this means to me."

Grace chuckled. "I'm pretty sure I can tell. I'll call you later with flight details, okay?"

"Okay. Thanks again Grace."

"Don't mention it."

"Bye Grace." Luke said.

"Bye geek."

Luke chuckled and hung up. Grace hung up and shook her head.

* * *

Grace was right and within a couple days, she was finished with her case and got a flight for California. Joan, Adam and Luke decided to meet Grace at the airport all together. 

They didn't have to wait long before Grace's flight came in. Once the doors opened, they waited as the crowd of people cleared out. Joan was the first to spot Grace and she jumped up and down excitedly. Grace walked out and looked around before spotting the group. She grinned and walked over.

"Hey!"

"Grace!" Joan walked over and hugged her catching Grace off guard.

"Girardi!" Grace warned.

"Oh stop it I was excited." Joan said pulling away and looking Grace over. She looked just like she did when she was 17. "You haven't changed a bit."

"Neither have you." Grace saw Adam and smiled. "Hey!"

"Grace!" Adam walked over and hugged her before pulling away. "It's so good to see you!"

"You too." Grace chuckled. She looked at Luke and smiled. "Hey geek."

"Hey." Luke walked over and hugged her before pulling away. "Thank you."

"Hey I don't do this for just anybody." Grace said. "Now let's go. I want to meet this kid I'm helping you fight for."

Luke chuckled and they went to get her bags before heading to Adam's ex-girlfriend's place where Elizabeth and Rosalia were. Christina was outside reading a book when she spotted Adam's car. She got up and went to greet them. She smiled when she saw Grace.

"Hey Grace. It's good to see you again."

"You too, Chris." Christina rolled her eyes. Only Grace could get away with calling her that. Christina and Adam had met in college and had a similar situation to Luke's. The only difference was they tried to stay together for the baby but decided they were better off as friends. They didn't have any problems raising Elizabeth, which were grounds for Joan and Grace finding Christina acceptable.

"Where're the kids?" Adam asked.

"Inside having lunch. Come on in."

They went into Christina's house and headed into the kitchen where two little girls were eating sandwiches and chips with milk. Grace had met Elizabeth a couple times when Adam brought her to New York for art shows but she had no doubt which child was Rosalia since Rosalia had her dad's bright blonde hair and Elizabeth had dark curly hair like her dad. Elizabeth looked up and grinned seeing her daddy. She hopped off the chair and went to greet him.

"Hey daddy! I drew you a picture! Want to see?"

"In a minute, sweetheart. Hey, do you remember my friend Grace?" Adam indicated his friend.

Elizabeth looked at her trying to familiarize her. Grace chuckled.

"It's okay kid, don't give yourself a brain meltdown."

Elizabeth giggled and looked at Grace. "I remember you! You call daddy and Aunt Joan by their last names."

Grace nodded. "That I do." Grace looked at Adam. "That's what the kid remembers about me? I thought it would have been the rant I went into when I found out what she was learning in school."

Adam chuckled. "Grace, she's six."

"I knew that." Grace looked at Christina who just shook her head.

Rosalia got up from eating and went over to hug her dad. "Hi daddy."

"Hey little star." Luke hugged her. "I want you to meet a friend of mine."

Rosalia nodded and looked up at the woman in the leather jacket and dark boots.

Grace smiled at Rosalia. "Hello."

"Hi." Rosalia said shyly.

Luke smiled. "Rose, this is Grace. Grace, this is Rosalia. We call her Rose."

"Cool." Grace walked over to Rosalia. "Hi. Your Aunt Joan told me a lot about you."

Rose gave Joan a look. "All lies I'm sure!" she said.

Joan scoffed and Luke chuckled. Grace nodded.

"I like this kid." Grace said. "Uh Luke we should probably go over the facts so I understand what's going on."

"You want to get to work already?" Luke asked. "I thought we'd rest before…"

"I've already conjured up an opinion of Rose's mother based on comments made by Girardi. But I can't really use those when arguing in front of a judge now can I?" Grace patted his arm and went into the living room.

Luke looked at Joan who chuckled.

"Rose, how would you like to bake cookies with your favorite Aunt Joan?"

Rosalia smiled and nodded. "I want to get my hands on the dough."

"Mommy, can we make cookies with them also?" Elizabeth asked.

"I have an idea. Let's make a contest out of it. Whoever gets the cookies in the oven the fastest gets to have the very first cookie."

The girls readily agreed and Joan chuckled.

"Hey Adam, will you be our referee?"

Adam nodded. "Sure."

Joan took Rosalia's hand leading her to the main ingredients in the kitchen. Adam, Christina, and Elizabeth quickly followed. Luke chuckled and went into the living room to meet Grace.

Grace sat on the couch with a notepad and a pen in hand. Luke sat beside her.

"Okay…so what qualifies Lydia to be a bad parent?"

"Um…well she goes out with her friends nights and she always has dates. She brings guys home with her and a couple times Rose has woken up from a nightmare and when she went to see her mom…"

"Okay I don't need the details, dude." Grace sighed. "But does she do anything for Rosalia's sake?"

Luke sighed. "She takes her for appointments she has. She gets her to school. But she forgets to pick her up and I get a call from the school saying Rosalia is still there."

"Right." Grace made some notes in her notebook. "What qualifies you as being a better parent?"

Luke chuckled and shook his head. "This is weird."

"What?" Grace looked at him.

"You asking me these questions."

Grace smiled. "I have to. It gives me an idea of what I should say. You know this, geek, you helped me with the whole Jack and the Giant thing."

Luke nodded. "Don't remind Joan or Adam. To this day Adam won't read that story to Liz."

Grace nodded. This she knew.

"Anyway um…I read to her. I take her out to movies, to eat, and the park. When she's sick, I give her medicine and stay with her until she's better. I love her. She's my little girl and I want her to be happy. It's almost sad when I go to pick her up, she runs to me like lightening but when her mom comes to get her, she lingers by my side."

Grace sighed. "I don't even know the kid and already I know what she's going through."

Luke frowned. "Grace…"

Grace shook her head. "Nope. Not going there this time. This whole trip is about your daughter. I don't even want to think about it."

Luke nodded. "Okay. I won't push it."

"Thanks geek." Grace looked down at her pad to make sure she had most of the stuff she needed. "Okay um it would be a good idea for you to keep a logbook. Write down the things you do with your daughter, what she tells you about visits with her mother, and take photos. Like just candid moments."

Luke nodded. "I can do that."

Grace smiled. "Great."

"Daddy! Come help us with the cookies!" Rosalia called. "Lizzie and Christie are winning!"

Luke looked at Grace who nodded.

"Go we'll finish this later."

Luke nodded and went into the kitchen. Grace was writing when Adam came in.

"Okay, you have to be the referee. Liz insists that three against two is unfair and I'm helping her now."

Grace rolled her eyes. "I'm no one's referee, dude."

"Grace!" Joan called.

"Okay, I'm coming!" She followed Adam into the kitchen and leaned against the counter. As she watched the group, her eyes fell on Luke and Rosalia. Rosalia had some dough in her hair and Luke was gently picking some out. Seeing Luke being so fatherly was weird yet it seemed…right.


	3. Chapter 3

Category: GL eventually

Rating: PG-13

Summary: Luke is embroiled in a bitter custody battle with his ex. Grace is his lawyer, appointed in a special case.

AN: I do not own or know the characters. Rosalia is the product of my imagination. I also must thank Sam for all her help in getting this started!

Grace picked up a cookie and took a bite of it before looking at Christina. "I never took Rove as a cookie making machine."

Christina chuckled. "He never did that when he was little?"

"Only with his mom. They never ate the cookies though. They would arrange them on a plate and paint them. I would come over and eat them just to see Rove's reaction. After she died, he never made cookies again."

Christina nodded. "I will never forget the look he gave me when Liz asked me to ask him to bake cookies with her. I thought he was going to have a freak out but he said okay."

Grace smiled slightly and drank some of her coffee.

"So…how did you become a family law attorney? From the way Adam, Joan, and Luke talked about you, I would have thought you'd be a professional activist."

Grace laughed. "Yeah. Um, I was at a courthouse watching some cases and I came across the case of a little girl whose parents only cared about their wants and needs and couldn't prove why they could care for her. I wasn't sure what to do besides hit those people over the head but then I realized that instead of sitting there and watching this one case go on, I could be doing something for other families who were going through what that little girl and then I went through."

Christina nodded. "Whatever happened in that case?"

Grace shrugged. "She was given to the grandparents. I don't know what happened afterwards, this was all while I was still in college."

Christina looked out towards the den to see Rosalia and Liz coloring while Adam, Luke, and Joan sat nearby digging into the cookies.

"Rosalia's a great kid." She said.

"Looks like it." Grace said. "How's she handling this?"

"All right, I guess. But she's smart. She's asked me before why is it I can get along with Adam when her parents don't get along."

Grace winced. "Talk about awkward moments."

"Mm hmm. I couldn't give her an answer."

"So what did you do? Use the old 'go play with your toys' while your guilt settled?"

Christina chuckled. "Yes, Grace, I have missed your cynical sarcasm."

"Be prepared to see more of it." Grace grabbed her glass of coke and took a sip.

* * *

Grace knocked on the side of the door and waited for the come in before walking into the office of Patricia Davis. Grace walked over to the front of the desk and waited. Patricia Davis was Lydia's lawyer and from what Grace knew of her, she was fierce and hardly ever lost a case. Patty Davis was the complete opposite of Grace. She had long dark hair and was wearing a designer dress suit while Grace often wore pants suits when she could when she was in the office. Most of the time you could see her in ripped jeans and a t-shirt. This made clients feel more open with Grace because she was being her real self. Patty looked at Grace and smiled.

"Well, well if it isn't New York's finest attorney Grace Polk."

"Patricia. I read your book on the social welfare of kids in custody situations. Impressive."

"Thank you. Please sit down."

Grace turned to the leather chair and grimaced before turning back to the lawyer. "Got anything wooden?"

Patricia sighed and pointed at a chair near the window. Grace pulled it over and sat down.

"So, you will be representing Luke Girardi in the case against my client?" Patty asked.

"Yes."

"Now…according to Lydia, you have some history with Mr. Girardi, correct?"

Grace sighed. She knew this question would come up and she already had her answer.

"Luke and I are best friends and I'm here to help him fight for the kid he loves more than anything. Whatever happened between him and me is our business."

"So, you working with him won't bring up anything."

Grace gave her a look. "Okay look. This meeting is about the case and this case is about a 6 year old little girl. Let's leave the past where it has no bearing."

"All right." Patty looked through her notes. "Have you spoken with Luke about the situation."

"Yes. I have all my notes."

"All right. Now let's talk about what both sides want."

Grace nodded. "Luke wants sole custody of his daughter with supervised visitation."

"That is exactly what Lydia wants."

Grace raised an eyebrow. "She wants supervised visitation where Luke is concerned? She's the one who leaves her house at all hours of the night without anyone around to watch Rosalia. She doesn't even call Luke when she can't pick Rose up from school."

"She gets very busy with her job and she is trying to be a better mother."

"I'd like to see how please. Last week Joan went to pick Rose up to go to the movies and she was still in her pajamas while Lydia and her boyfriend were making out on the couch."

"It was still early in the morning."

"Well according to the ticket stub Joan kept, the movie began at 2:30. It was way after noon when Joan got her."

"You have gotten all your information. You're good, Polk." Patty sat back in her chair.

Grace smirked. "It's only the beginning."


	4. Chapter 4

Everyone, thanks for the feedback! You rock, as always!

Title: No objection to you

Category: GL eventually

Rating: PG-13

Summary: Luke is embroiled in a bitter custody battle with his ex. Grace is his lawyer, appointed in a special case.

AN: I do not own or know the characters. Rosalia is the product of my imagination. I also must thank Sam for all her help in getting this started!

Luke answered the door and stepped back as Grace stormed in.

"So she asks me 'can you and Mr. Girardi work together without starting something?' Hah! What does my personal business have anything to do with-" Grace paused finally noticing Rose sitting on the floor reading a book. She turned to Luke.

"Oh…I'm so sorry I forgot you had Rose today."

Luke chuckled. "No problem. How did the meeting go?"

Grace looked at Rosalia and then Luke, as if asking him if it was okay to talk.

"I can't say much but basically you and Lydia want the same thing."

Luke shook his head. "Unbelievable. I've never given her the belief that I couldn't be trusted with my daughter."

Grace nodded. "I know."

"Grace? Want to read with me?" Rosalia asked.

Grace, slightly taken aback, looked at Luke unsure.

"Um…in a second Rose, I have to speak with Grace okay?"

Rosalia nodded and went back to her book. Luke walked Grace over to the kitchen and sighed.

"I spent the whole morning looking up things that could be brought up in a custody battle. Well um…remember the night Adam went missing in the woods?"

Grace sighed and looked at him pointedly. "Actually the thought that I could loose my best friend like that has never left my brain."

Luke winced. "Right. Well um…they can't bring that up can they?"

"No! That happened when you were a stupid 16-year-old kid. You learned from your mistake and you've never done it again…right?" Grace raised an eyebrow.

"You would have been the first to know."

Grace chuckled. "What matters is how your life affects Rosalia's right now. If you did something dumb like that now, you'd most likely lose her."

Luke nodded looking down at the ground. "Right."

Grace looked at Rose who glanced up and smiled. Grace smiled back.

"Well let me go see what literature you're corrupting her brain with."

Grace went over and sat down on the floor. "Hey, what book is that?"

Rosalia showed her the cover, which showed a big dinosaur sitting on a bed looking at someone who entered the room.

"This looks interesting. How do dinosaurs say goodnight? Well how do they say goodnight?" Grace asked looking at Rose.

"I'll tell you!" Rose took the book and turned it to the first page.

Luke watched them for a few minutes before smiling and heading into kitchen.

Sometime later, Grace had finished reading with Rose and went to see what Luke was doing in the kitchen. At the moment, he was inspecting some chicken.

"I swear that kid has the vocabulary of a 10 year old. She really is smart."

Luke smiled. "Mom said I was talking like that at her age."

Grace nodded. "I can imagine."

Luke looked at her and smiled. Grace smiled slightly then indicated the chicken. "Dinner?"

"Yeah. Just thinking about what else to make with it."

"Garlic red potatoes and green peas? Can't go wrong with that." Grace said.

Luke laughed. "Right. Sounds good. Um…Grace?"

"Yeah?"

"Would you like to stay for dinner?"

Grace looked at him slightly surprised. She was just going to get ready to leave.

"Oh I um…I…well Girardi really wanted company so…"

Luke raised an eyebrow. "Uh have you talked to Joan today?"

Grace looked down embarrassed. Even though she was staying with Joan, she had gotten up before Joan and didn't even see her when she left to go see Lydia's lawyer.

"Joan goes to the community center once a week. She's there tonight."

"Oh…" Grace coughed slightly and nodded. "Well then…sure."

Luke smiled, almost looking relieved. "Great!"

"Okay well…anything I can do to help?"

"No, you just go in the living room and rest. I'll handle everything."

Grace nodded and went into the living room, highly amused.

Rose sat next to Grace and looked at her. "Ever had my daddy's cooking?"

Grace looked at her and smiled. "A few times. Why?"

"He's the best! I think he's almost better than grandpa!"

Grace laughed out loud and Luke made a sound from the kitchen.

"Don't ever tell my dad she said that! I'll never live it down!"

Grace chuckled. "You have my word, geek."

"Why do you call daddy that?" Rose asked sweetly.

Grace smirked. "Because it was a nickname I used for him in high school."

"He let you get away with that?" Rose looked skeptical.

"Actually he did."

"Hmm." Rose got off the couch and ran over to her dad. "Daddy! Do you really let her call you a geek?"

Luke blushed. "Yes."

Rose looked at them before nodding and running into the hallway towards her room.

"Hey where are you going?" Luke called.

"Washing my hands!" she called.

"Okay. Make sure to get under your nails!"

Grace looked at Luke weirdly. "Dude."

Luke looked at her and smiled painfully. "I know. I became my own father."

Grace laughed.

When dinner was ready, they went to the table to eat. While eating, Rose looked up and Grace.

"How long have you known my daddy?"

"A long time."

Rosalia nodded. "Were you friends at first?"

Luke and Grace smirked and looked at each other.

"Sweetie, Grace only was friends with Uncle Adam, until Aunt Joan and daddy moved to town."

"Then your Aunt Joan wormed her way into my life. It didn't take long for Luke to do the same."

Luke blushed.

Rosalia giggled. "What did you do?" she asked Luke.

"I asked her to be my partner in the science fair."

"You so wanted to ask me to that Crystal Ball." Grace said.

Luke looked around then put a hand to his chest. "Um…hello? This is ME we're talking about! All I cared about was science."

"But you know you wanted to ask me."

"The first time I asked you, the ball was still in it' planning stages."

Grace rolled her eyes. Rosalia smirked.

"You two went to a dance together?"

"Sort of. He went and I came later. We mocked everyone dancing, then somehow ended up having fun."

Rosalia looked at Luke. "Did you walk her home?"

Luke coughed slightly and Grace raised an eyebrow.

"Um…no. Actually I offered but she wouldn't let me."

Grace looked at Rose. "I told him that I wasn't going to let my dignity be crushed by letting him walk me out of the gym."

Luke glared at her and Rose laughed.

"You're funny Grace!" Rose looked at her empty plate and then at Luke. "I'm done daddy."

Luke nodded. "Okay, go play."

Rose smiled and hopped off her chair and went into the living room.

"She is an awesome kid." Grace said.

"Yeah." Luke smiled as he watched his daughter get out her sketchbook and some crayons. "I don't think I ever realized I could love something more than science."

Grace smirked. "Even string theory?"

Luke laughed and shook his head. "Yeah." Luke looked at her. "That really was a wonderful time in my life Grace."

Grace glared at him. "Don't be getting mushy on me now."

"No, I mean it." Luke said.

Grace smiled. "It was wonderful for me too."

Luke looked down at his plate. "So…what are you going to have to do now?"

"Well…Rose seems old enough to know what she wants so most likely the judge will want to hear what she has to say. I also have to prepare my statements and we need to go over the questioning."

"Sounds like a lot of work."

"It is but…hopefully in the end it'll all be worth it." Grace said giving Luke's hand a squeeze.

Luke looked at her hand and looked into her eyes. Grace nodded and pulled away as Rose came back in with a piece of paper in her hands.

"Grace! I drew you a picture!"

"You did?" Grace asked startled. "Well let's see it then."

Grace looked at the picture to see a drawing of four figures. One had long brown hair with a dress on, the other had blonde hair with a leather jacket on, another had blond hair with glasses on and the last figure had brown hair with a sweater on and a canvas in one hand.

"Let me guess, this is Aunt Joan, me, daddy, and Uncle Adam?"

"Uh huh! I found the picture in my room!"

Grace looked at Luke. "My picture's in her room?"

"Well you are an important person in my life. I wanted to share you with someone else who meant the world to me."

Grace shifted uncomfortably and looked at Rose. "Thank you. I will put this on the refrigerator when I get back to Aunt Joan's."

"Yay!" Rose clapped.

Grace wouldn't admit it but her heart twang when the little girl's face lit up at Grace's approval.

Once Grace and Luke were finished with dinner, Grace was helping Luke put the dishes away. Rose stood at the edge of the doorway watching them. They were talking and laughing about something but this wasn't what Rose was paying attention to. She was watching how they were looking at each other. Luke would gaze at her then Grace would turn, smile slightly and they'd just look at each other until they remembered what they were doing and went back to the dishes. Rose saw enough of these movies with Aunt Joan.

Her daddy was in love with Grace. Rose smirked. There was only one thing she could do to make this situation work in her favor.


	5. Chapter 5

Everyone thanks for the feedback! As for the Parent Trap reference...uh no.

Title: No objection to you

Category: GL eventually

Rating: PG-13

Summary: Luke is embroiled in a bitter custody battle with his ex. Grace is his lawyer, appointed in a special case.

AN: I do not own or know the characters. Rosalia is the product of my imagination. I also must thank Sam for all her help in getting this started!

On Sunday night, Luke drove Rose to Lydia's house. Their weekend was over and Rose was back at her mother's for the week. Luke stopped the car and got out of the car. He let her out and they walked up to the porch.

"Hey Rose, come here sweetie." Luke bent down to give her a hug. "Be a good girl, okay?"

"Okay daddy." Rose looked at him. "Can't I stay with you another night?"

Luke smiled apologetically. "I wish you could, baby girl."

Rose frowned slightly then they turned hearing the door open. Lydia smiled seeing Rose.

"Hey sweetie. Did you have fun at daddy's?"

Rose nodded. "Yeah."

Lydia nodded then looked at Luke. Luke looked at Rose and smiled.

"I love you. I'll see you Saturday, okay?"

"Okay." Rose hugged him and kissed his cheek.

Lydia sighed. "Sweetie, go put your stuff away then I'll make you something to eat."

Rose nodded and went inside. Luke stood up and sighed. Lydia crossed her arms.

"So…I hear Grace is your attorney."

Luke nodded. "You heard right. Got a problem with that?"

Lydia scoffed. "Besides the fact that the girl you made out with in a room full of dead animals is now helping you try to win custody of Rose?"

Luke chuckled. "Don't make a big thing out of something you know nothing about. My relationship with Grace is in the past and none of your business."

Lydia nodded. "I just hope it doesn't interfere with the case. It's not good publicity for the client to be in a heated affair with the attorney."

Luke rolled his eyes. He really wanted to yell 'Step off, bitch!' but instead he said, "How on Earth did I get mixed up with such a…" he wanted to say a certain word that rhymed with bored but he knew it wouldn't fly with the judge.

"A what, Luke?" Lydia said with a raised eyebrow.

Luke shook his head. "Forget it. You're not worth it. Take care of my daughter. Don't let me get a call from the neighbor again." And with that, he turned and went back to his car.

* * *

Joan opened the door and smiled seeing Luke. "Hey. Come in."

Luke walked into her condo and took his jacket off, putting it on the coat rack. "Hey sis." He sniffed the air and smiled. "You didn't."

"I did." Joan grinned.

"Grandma's apple cobbler. You know I could never resist it."

Joan laughed. "You couldn't resist anything. Come on."

Luke and Joan went into the kitchen where Luke got a couple of plates, napkins, and forks. Joan pulled out the pan from the oven and set it on the stove. She had finished making it 10 minutes earlier so she was able to slice a couple of pieces and put them on the plates.

"So…anything happen while you dropped Rose off?"

"Anything ever not happen?" Luke asked rolling his eyes. "She got on me about the fact that Grace is my lawyer. She acted as if we couldn't handle a professional relationship."

"You didn't say anything you shouldn't have right?" Joan asked sternly.

"I almost called her a whore. You would have been so proud."

Joan chuckled. "Luke!"

"Hey how would you have reacted if your ex got all up in arms about Adam being your lawyer in a custody suit?"

Joan looked at Luke. "I would have laughed so hard I would have fallen to the ground."

Luke nodded and they sat down to eat. "So…do you think this will work?"

"Any judge would be stupid to let that little girl stay with that woman. And I'll say that in court if I have to."

Luke laughed. "Why must every member of my family call a judge stupid? You guys want me to lose."

"Of course not Luke!"

"This is revenge for making you all fall asleep in your food due to my science tangents, isn't it? I knew it!"

Joan laughed. "Luke, come on!"

"Admit it, Joan." Luke tried to sound serious but it didn't work.

"Oh…this is fun." Joan said.

"Yeah. Thanks. These moments help take my mind off the real world."

Joan smiled. Luke looked around as if he remembered something.

"Where's Grace?"

"Oh she went to visit Adam. The whole catching up with your childhood best friend thing."

"Ah." Luke nodded.

* * *

Adam walked into the living room of his apartment and smiled. "My entire portfolio saved just for you."

Grace smirked. "I feel so honored. Hand it over." Grace grabbed it and flipped through the drawings. They were of Rose and Liz in candid moments. "These are amazing. Have you shown the girls?"

"Not yet. I'm waiting for their birthdays or holidays. Liz says that her favorite time spending with me is when we draw. She says if we don't draw at least one thing before she goes home, then the whole weekend was pointless."

Grace chuckled. "I see Liz has been spending time with Luke?"

Adam nodded. "She is like his surrogate daughter I swear. We tend to trade off with the kids."

Grace gave him a confused look.

"Don't ask. So…how are you doing with he case?"

"You know I can't talk about it, Rove."

Adam nodded and folded his arms across his chest. Grace sighed.

"She's seven years old, Rove. She should be baking cookies with her mother and having fun without wondering if she's going to be home later."

"They bake cookies together?" Adam asked.

Grace looked at Adam.

"Uh…comments I've heard Rose say to Liz."

Grace shook her head. "She's so innocent."

Adam nodded. "I remember the first time I met her. Joan was watching her and she was about three weeks old. I went to visit and she was the most beautiful baby. She was a happy baby. I never heard her cry."

Grace sighed. "I want Luke to win so bad."

"We all do." The phone rang and Adam got up to get it. "Hello?" Adam smiled. "Hey Christina. Yes, I would love to speak to the little artist."

Grace rolled her eyes but smiled.

"Hey Liz. How's my little one doing? You all ready for bed? Oh really? Well you have fun on your play date and I will see you later okay? I love you. Good night sweetheart." Adam smiled and then hung up.

"How do you two do it?" Grace asked.

Adam looked at the phone and then at Grace. "If one of us has a problem with the other, we write each other a note asking for a conference and we spend at least half an hour or so talking it out. It works too because I don't think we've ever argued in front of Liz."

"Lucky baby."

Adam looked at Grace. "So…am I going to be called to testify?"

"Most likely. You hate the idea of courtrooms don't you?"

Adam shrugged.

"Don't worry. Girardi is hesitant also. But I will coach you guys and you'll be okay. This isn't like high school. As long as you're not keeping anything from me?"

Adam smirked. "Besides the CD I forgot to give back before you left Arcadia?"

Grace's jaw dropped. She grabbed a throw pillow and threw it at Adam, who caught in his hands.


	6. Chapter 6

Thanks for the feedback everyone! I know it's unrealistic that Grace can practice law away from home but we can suspend imagination for Grace and Luke, right?

Title: No objection to you

Category: GL eventually

Rating: PG-13

Summary: Luke is embroiled in a bitter custody battle with his ex. Grace is his lawyer, appointed in a special case.

AN: I do not own or know the characters. Rosalia is the product of my imagination. I also must thank Sam for all her help in getting this started!

Joan walked into the courtroom and took in her surroundings. She went over to the table where her name was written in capital letters on a piece of paper, which was taped to a chair. Grace had requested Christina, Adam, Joan, and Luke come to the courthouse in order to practice their testimony even though it was still a few weeks away. Grace and Luke would be themselves while Joan was going to act like Lydia's attorney. Christina and Adam were going to take turns acting as "Lydia". Joan sat in her seat and turned seeing Christina and Adam walk in.

"Hey, are they here yet?" Adam asked.

"Not yet. Luke is meeting Grace at her temporary office." Joan said.

Adam nodded and sat down to wait for his friends. Five minutes later, Grace and Luke arrived.

"Okay people! Let's get everyone ready. Geek, take your seat right here." Grace said indicating the table on the right. "Um…Rove, sit in the front behind Male Girardi. You'll be the witness first and then Christina will be Lydia."

Christina made a face and sat down. "So can I make myself sound like a bitch?"

"Sure but refrain yourself from calling yourself a no good lousy excuse for a mother." Grace said.

Christina scoffed and looked at Joan. "She ruined my plan!"

Adam and Luke chuckled and Joan shook her head. Grace just smirked.

"Okay…so we will begin with our opening arguments for why our side deserves to win. It's pretty much like a murder trial…except we're dealing with a custody hearing. Got it?"

"Uh…sure." Joan said.

"Didn't mock trial teach you anything?" Grace asked.

"That the truth always comes out?" Joan said.

Adam winced visibly and Christina quickly cleared her throat. "So who's going to be called first?"

"Um…friends, family members, anyone who spoke to Rosalia. And you guys will all be called of course. Luke and Lydia…and possibly Rose, if the judge allows it."

"Wait, Rose has to testify?" Luke asked.

Grace nodded. "Yeah, I mean, she knows who she wants to be with."

Luke nodded. "I just…I don't want to put her through that."

"I know. But this whole deal is for her. She deserves to be heard."

Luke sighed. "You're right. I can't just make decisions for her. That's not fair."

Joan smiled and Grace nodded.

"Okay…so I will call my first witness. Adam Rove." Grace nodded to Adam.

Adam got up and went up to the witness box. He sat down and smiled slightly.

"Okay."

Grace went up to him. "Okay so we'll just practice for a bit. Mr. Rove, what is your relationship with the child in question?"

"I am her Uncle…well honorary Uncle."

"Okay. When you see Rosalia after a weekend with her mother, how is she?"

"Sometimes she's withdrawn. She clings to us if we just go to the store even though someone else is with her. The moment she sees Luke, she brightens up."

"What do you think is best for Rosalia in regards to whom she should stay with?"

"Her father."

Grace nodded and turned to face Joan. "Okay. Now Girardi's turn."

Grace sat down and Joan got up. "Okay…Mr. Rove, has there ever been a time when my client, Lydia, was a good mother to Rosalia?"

"Yeah but-"

"So really she hasn't done anything wrong. She hasn't damaged Rosalia."

"Only recently." Adam said.

Joan nodded and looked at Grace. "Have you ever witnessed Lydia purposefully neglect Rose?"

"Um…well…" Adam winced. "No."

"Nothing further." Joan sat down.

"Okay, that was good." Grace got up. "Those will be the types of questions we'll ask. Any questions?"

"Yeah. Can I say yes to that question if asked?" Adam asked.

"Unfortunately, no." Christina said with a smile as Grace shook her head.

"Step down Rove." Once Adam was seated, Christina went up to the stand and sat down.

"Okay so…when Lydia gets up, I could expect to hear a lot from her." Grace turned to Christina. "Lydia, what type of things do you do with your daughter?"

"Um…we play games, go to the park, and see a movie and we just have fun together."

"Uh huh. Okay. Why do you leave her at all hours of the night?"

Christina, not sure what to say, just shrugged. "I'm a self serving bitch?"

Everyone giggled and Grace had to keep her composure.

"Okay. Thank you." Grace sat down. Joan got up and pretended to question Christina a bit, who found it hard to get in Lydia's head. Finally, she was able to step down. After a few minutes, Christina got to go up to herself and was able to practice better.

Grace sighed as she asked her final question, "Christina, being a mother yourself, could you see yourself leaving your child alone at night to fend for herself?"

"No way. Not until she's at least 16." Christina said.

"Thank you." Grace sat down. Luke got to get up and practice and Joan was sure not to be too hard on him but she made him want to yell just so he knew where his boundaries were. Grace noted that when the possibility of Rose getting hurt or worse came up, Luke got riled up. Grace got up and walked over to Luke to begin her practice run with him.

"Hey, Geek." She whispered, "you got to keep it together, okay? For Rose."

Luke looked into her eyes and nodded. Grace sighed.

"Mr. Girardi, what is your current occupation?"

"I'm a pediatrician."

Grace nodded. "Okay, what are your usual hours?"

"9:00 AM to 4:00 PM."

"Okay…so you can take Rose to school in the mornings. Where would she go after school?"

Luke shifted a bit in his seat and looked at Grace. "Well, my friend Christina's daughter goes to school with Rose. Christina can pick her up and an hour later, I'll come to get her."

Grace nodded and turned to face the group. "Those are the types of questions that will be asked. Are you all prepared?" she looked at each of her friends and they all nodded. "Good."

Joan glanced at her watch and her eyes widened. "Oh man! Luke, mom, dad, and Kevin will be here in an hour!"

Luke groaned. "I totally lost track of the time. We better get them."

Joan got up and turned to Adam, Christina, and Grace. "Hey, we're all having dinner at my condo. You guys want to come?"

"Sure!" Christina smiled and Adam nodded.

"Of course!"

Grace nodded. "Well I'm already raiding your fridge so I'll be there."

Joan laughed and they all got their things and headed out of the courtroom.

* * *

Helen, Will and Kevin arrived at Joan's place via Luke's truck and everyone said their hellos before Helen went to the kitchen to help Joan and Christina with dinner. Grace was in the living room with Liz, no doubt telling her the dangers of elementary school food in the cafeteria. Will, Kevin, Luke, and Adam sat in the den talking about their respective employments and how work was going.

"How are you doing son?" Will asked Luke.

Luke sighed and looked out the window where the sun was setting. The sky was the perfect shade of purple as the orange glow of the sun made its way to red as it dipped beneath the earth.

"It's just so hard. I can't stand to be putting Rose through this. Why does it have to be difficult?"

Kevin shrugged. "Who knows?"

Luke looked at Adam. "You lucked out, dude. Liz is so unbelievably happy with you and Chris."

"We try." Adam said with a smile. "Doesn't mean we don't want to hurt each other once in a while."

Luke chuckled and Kevin nodded. Will just shook his head.

Once dinner was ready, everyone sat around the table to eat. They didn't talk much about the custody hearing since Liz was in the room but Grace did mention to Kevin, Helen, and Will that they would need to be deposed. In the middle of dinner, the doorbell rang so Joan got up.

"I'll get it." Joan got up and went to the door. She jumped slightly seeing a woman holding the hand of…her niece! "Rose? Baby, how did you get here?" Joan immediately gathered the child into her arms and looked at the woman warily.

"Are you Joan?"

"Yes." Joan stroked Rose's hair. "Who are you exactly?"

"I'm Mrs. Middleton, Lydia's neighbor. Rose came to my house asking if I could make her something to eat but I was having a barbecue so I asked her if she had someone to stay with and she gave me your address."

Joan looked at Rose. "Sweetie, where's your mother?"

"On a date." Rose said.

"When did she go on her date?" Joan asked.

"Um…before I took a nap."

Joan sighed. Rose's naps were at 3:00. "Luke! Get over here!"

Luke walked over and his eyes widened seeing Rose. "Honey…" Rose reached for him and Luke took her, placing a kiss on her head. "Are you okay?"

"I'm hungry, daddy."

"Okay, I'll get you something." Luke took her into the kitchen.

Joan looked at Mrs. Middleton. "Thank you for bringing her."

"No trouble."

Grace walked over. "Um excuse me? Hi, I'm Grace Polk. I'm Rose' father's lawyer. Could I speak to you for a moment?"

"Sure!" Mrs. Middleton looked slightly confused as she waited for Grace.

Grace nodded and looked at Joan.

"I'm just…going to go and get Rose some juice." Joan walked away.

Joan went into the kitchen and stood beside Luke, who was dishing up some food for Rose. She glanced over at the kitchen table to see Rose sitting in Helen's lap and talking excitedly to her. Helen had that tight smile on her face, which meant while she was keeping up a brave and happy face, she was seething on the inside.

"We have to call Lydia. Just so she knows Rose is with us." Joan said.

Luke sighed. "I can't talk to her now."

Joan smiled weakly. "Want me to call?"

"Knock yourself out."

Joan picked up the phone and dialed Lydia's cell phone.

"Hello?" Lydia answered on the second ring.

"Lydia! Hi! How are you doing?" Joan asked with a grin.

"Uh…hi. Joan I'm um…kind of in the middle of something."

"Doing what?" Joan asked.

"Um…making Rose some dinner." Lydia sounded nervous.

Joan laughed. "Oh? How is that possible when she's sitting in my house."

"What! How did she get there?"

"A neighbor brought her over. Rose went to her house asking for food." Joan said as she leaned against the counter.

Lydia didn't say anything.

"Okay look…we're going to feed Rose and she's going to spend time with her grandparents. Then you can call us and let us know when you're home so we can bring her home. Okay?"

Lydia gulped. "Um…well…"

"You know…I could just call your lawyer right now. She'd be so upset that you were jeopardizing your chance of winning."

Lydia sighed. "I'll call you after the movie."

"All right." Joan hung up on her. She looked at Luke and smiled.

Luke nodded slowly. "It's always better coming from you, isn't it?"

Joan chuckled. "Go give Rose some food. I'll get her drink."

Luke smiled gratefully and went over to his seat. He set Rose's plate down next to his and took her from Helen and settled her into his lap. Joan brought Rose her juice and sat down. Grace came over and took her seat.

Helen looked at her daughter. "Did anyone call Lydia?"

"I just did. She'll call when her date's over and we can take Rose home."

Christina rolled her eyes. "So she'll call at 6:30 in the morning?"

Everyone chuckled and Luke put his head on top of Rose's to keep from laughing.


	7. Chapter 7

I got a friendly reminder from my beta about the American Bar Association. If you belong to the ABA, you can practice wherever. You'd need to have a license to set up a firm, but Grace is just heading one case, so she wouldn't need a special license. So thanks Shadow for enlightening us!

Title: No objection to you

Category: GL eventually

Rating: PG-13

Summary: Luke is embroiled in a bitter custody battle with his ex. Grace is his lawyer, appointed in a special case.

AN: I do not own or know the characters. Rosalia is the product of my imagination. I also must thank Sam for all her help in getting this started!

After dinner and dessert, Christina decided to take Liz home since she was getting tired. After saying goodbye to everyone, Adam walked Christina and Liz to the car so he could make sure they got in safely. He came back inside to help Joan and Helen clean up. Kevin, Will, and Luke were playing with Rose. Grace was watching TV.

Luke looked over at Grace and smiled. He turned to Rose.

"I'm going to watch TV with Grace, okay?"

Rose nodded. "Okay daddy."

Luke kissed her forehead and got up to join Grace. She looked up at him.

"Hey geek."

"Hey." Luke sat down. "Well I've calmed down considerably." He looked at the time on the VCR. "9:30. Rose should be in bed."

Grace chuckled. "And why isn't she?"

Luke looked at Rose, who was currently being entertained by Kevin and a pair of socks with eyes sewed on them.

"She'll never go to bed with Kevin here." Luke said.

Grace nodded. Rose got up and squeezed her way in between Grace and Luke.

"I want to watch a movie." She said.

Luke smiled. "Okay. Let's see what we have." He went over to Joan's entertainment center and looked through the DVDs. "Joan, what are you doing with Star Wars?"

"Hayden Christiansen! Hello!" Joan called from the kitchen.

Luke and Grace looked at each other, both amused and slightly afraid, and Luke looked through the rest of the DVDs. He noticed a stack of Disney movies and pulled one out.

"How about Cinderella?" he asked, glancing over his shoulder at Grace and Rose.

Grace grimaced at the thought of the movie. She got up, walked over to the entertainment center, and pulled out a different DVD.

"How about Mulan?" Grace asked.

Luke nodded. "I should have know." He smirked before putting the movie in and getting up to sit beside his daughter and Grace.

Halfway into the movie, Helen, Will, and Kevin decided to head over to their hotel. After saying their goodnights, they left. Joan locked the front door and looked over at Luke, Rose, and Grace on the couch. She smiled seeing that Rose was nearly falling asleep.

"I'm going to go to bed. Night you guys." Joan said.

"Night Joan." Luke said.

Grace nodded. "Night."

Joan walked over and kissed Rose on the forehead before going to her bedroom.

Grace looked at Luke. "How long are you two planning on staying?"

Luke shrugged. "Until whenever her mom calls to get her."

Grace looked at the screen and looked down when Rose began to mutter some of the lines. "I take it she knows this movie well?"

"Yeah. Anytime she wants to, we watch it. She got Liz into it."

"Nice." Grace said.

Luke smiled and they went back to the movie. Sometime later, Grace felt a tiny arm drape across her waist and some hair brushed against her arm. Grace looked down to see Rose sleeping halfway on top of her. Grace looked over at Luke, slightly panicked.

"Pst! Dude!" Grace whispered.

Luke didn't hear her, as he was so enraptured with the movie.

"Dude!" Grace said a little louder.

Luke looked at her. "What?"

Grace glanced down at Rose. "The kid's got me trapped, dude! What do I do?"

Luke looked down at Rose and chuckled.

"This is not funny!" Grace said.

Luke smiled. "What I normally do is I wrap my arms around her and put her in my lap."

Grace looked at him as if telling him to get moving.

"She wakes up easily."

"Nothing is ever simple with you Girardis." Grace sighed and put an arm around Rose's back and the other one tucked under her legs. She pulled Rose into her lap and Rose curled up in her arms. Grace just looked at Luke.

Luke grinned. "Okay baby come here." He carefully took Rose from Grace and cradled her in his arms. She opened her eyes slightly and Luke kissed her cheek. "Sh go back to sleep, little star."

Grace smiled.

The phone rang and Luke sighed. He got up and carefully placed Rose on the couch before grabbing the phone. "Hello?"

"Yeah…hi Luke it's Lydia," she said sounding as if she didn't want to be calling.

"Hey Lydia. You home?" Luke asked, semi hopefully.

"Well…no. You can take her for the night. I got this thing." Lydia said.

Luke bit his tongue to keep from saying anything he shouldn't. "Oh?"

"Yeah, so you can have her till tomorrow."

Luke scoffed and hung up. He walked over to the couch and sat down on his knees on the floor. He looked at Rose's sleeping face and shook his head. Grace put a hand on Luke's shoulder. "You probably should get her home and in bed."

Luke smiled slightly. "Yeah. It's pretty late."

Grace got up and stopped the movie. She put the disc back in its case and put the movie away. Luke put on his jacket on and picked Rosalia up. Grace walked over to the door and opened it for him. Luke walked over and stepped onto the porch. He turned to look at Grace.

"I'll call you later, okay?"

Grace nodded. "Night rocket boy."

Luke chuckled at the nickname and turned to leave. Grace shut the door and locked it before heading to bed.


End file.
